Jump to content

History 2010


Sparky

Recommended Posts

I had a dream last night that I got into Yale and went to an accepted students weekend there, where everybody was like "OMG, I CAN'T BELIEVE WE GOT INTO YALE!!" Then I woke up and, as you imagine, was pretty pissed off to realize that it wasn't real. I really need to get out more!

I dreamed about Yale last night too, because I was 100% certain that the first acceptance was going to come today. And it did, and no email for me yet. Maybe that first person was just a very early notification; it could be that next week is the big Yale week.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yeah, I'd be surprised if a whole lot more Yale notifications went out today. My money's on next week. But why the hell do they do that? Why notify one person at a time, and why not reject us already if we're already in the reject pile? I don't get it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I don't mean to ruin everyone's day here, but I just looked at the results section for last year, concerning Yale. It seems last year they sent out acceptances on the 6th (a Friday), 2 of which are posted on this site. Then on the 9th (a Monday) they sent out a slew of rejections. So, since we've already had our 2 Friday acceptances posted, I won't be at all surprised if I receive notification on Monday that I've been rejected. Stupid interfering weekend!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

...In a van down by the river...

Hahahahaha...this apropos SNL quote by Sparky gave me my first gradcafe laugh..Thanks Sparky..I needed that (although the people around me in the library just gave me some weird looks)..I'm definitely feeling more of your vibe than hopkinsgirl's optimistic one...all this waiting and obsessive checking of email, and then the results page, and then my phone, on repeat, over and over again, has me feeling almost as crazy as Chris Farley looked during some of those skits...:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I second cooperstreet's interest in the other UCLAers field of study.

Also: many congrats to you both! Hooray for sunny LA!

Ok. I'm Middle East and haven't heard anything yet, so I guess that's a relief. I wonder if the other person is East Asian also.

Edited by africanhistoryphd
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ok. I'm Middle East and haven't heard anything yet, so I guess that's a relief. I wonder if the other person is East Asian also.

Their deadline for FLAS applications is the 16th. I'm guessing that might be the main reason I heard from them unofficially this early--that they wanted to give enough time to get that in. So, yeah, may not have any bearing on other fields, or even necessarily other applicants in the same field.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Their deadline for FLAS applications is the 16th. I'm guessing that might be the main reason I heard from them unofficially this early--that they wanted to give enough time to get that in. So, yeah, may not have any bearing on other fields, or even necessarily other applicants in the same field.

I'm the other person who heard from UCLA, and I'm also in East Asian. I'm also currently in East Asia, which account for the delayed reply. My guess about the FLAS was the same - giving a week or so to get it in. Of course, the deadline just HAS to be the day after my birthday...guess that party will have to be postponed!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looks like Wisconsin went ahead and changed their website statuses this morning for its American history applicants. I was one of the unlucky ones.

I guess I might as well throw in the towel now. Wisconsin had made it onto my list because one of my advisors told me that I was aiming too high, that I needed have some safeties, and he considered Wisconsin to be a relatively safety. And I guess, because I thought of it as such, I never put too much effort into it -- I didn't email any POIs, even though there was one prof who would have been a good fit in my field.

I know this rejection was probably a reflection of my own dismal effort and that this is all about fit, etc. But I can't help but think that, if I didn't get into Wisconsin, there's virtually no chance anywhere else. And now I'm preparing for that to become a reality. I was going to spend today working on a fellowship application from my alma mater, but maybe I should save my time for something else.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looks like Wisconsin went ahead and changed their website statuses this morning for its American history applicants. I was one of the unlucky ones.

I guess I might as well throw in the towel now. Wisconsin had made it onto my list because one of my advisors told me that I was aiming too high, that I needed have some safeties, and he considered Wisconsin to be a relatively safety. And I guess, because I thought of it as such, I never put too much effort into it -- I didn't email any POIs, even though there was one prof who would have been a good fit in my field.

I know this rejection was probably a reflection of my own dismal effort and that this is all about fit, etc. But I can't help but think that, if I didn't get into Wisconsin, there's virtually no chance anywhere else. And now I'm preparing for that to become a reality. I was going to spend today working on a fellowship application from my alma mater, but maybe I should save my time for something else.

I don't know if its good to think this way, especially on the idea of safety schools- I don't think any exist per se. Besides, Wisconsin is a very good, selective program, no shame in not getting in, its right up there with everywhere else you applied.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would hardly call Madison a safety. I personally know a very bright guy who got his BA from Cornell and an MPhill from Oxford, but was rejected from Madison History department. It's an isolated example, of course, but worth mentioning.

The reason I mention this is that there is no shame in being rejected by Madison, so don't worry about the rest of your apps. You'll be fine.

Edited by rockchalk
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the perspective and the consolation, deuterides and rockchalk. That was an unsportsmanlike and sour-grapes post full of first-rejection angst and insecurity. A hearty congratulations to everyone who's so far heard from Madison and best of luck on the rest of your applications, too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the perspective and the consolation, deuterides and rockchalk. That was an unsportsmanlike and sour-grapes post full of first-rejection angst and insecurity. A hearty congratulations to everyone who's so far heard from Madison and best of luck on the rest of your applications, too.

Don't worry about it. Its easy to lose perspective, especially if realize that all of us are probably the "big fish in a little pond" in our respective undergraduate departments and are used to having our egos (I know mine is anyway) pumped up by the respective advisers and letter writers we work with. I'm sure you'll get in somewhere great, if the people around you thought you could get in to those schools, then you probably can, you just need to get into the respective pegs that committees are trying to fit.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't worry about it. Its easy to lose perspective, especially if realize that all of us are probably the "big fish in a little pond" in our respective undergraduate departments and are used to having our egos (I know mine is anyway) pumped up by the respective advisers and letter writers we work with. I'm sure you'll get in somewhere great, if the people around you thought you could get in to those schools, then you probably can, you just need to get into the respective pegs that committees are trying to fit.

That is one of the problems.

The other problem is that there's no "safety" because departments want to be sure that they can get a high yield and we don't know if we're too competitive for a certain department. Although I am a bit scared that I might be too competitive for Emory, this "lack of response" puts me in a precarious position - if not this school, if I'm deemed too competitive and would think of it as a "safety" okay, then, what if the more competitive departments say no to me? I would've been glad to attend Emory just as I would've been glad to attend any other schools I applied to.

But nobody knows how competitive they were until after all the results and get answers from their primary faculty contact. When I applied in the first round, I was told that I wasn't, with my *lack* of languages and weak writing sample, I wasn't really that competitive. Now this round... with more language training and a very strong writing sample, we'll just have to see.

Ah well. Only a few more weeks to go.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To be quite frank, I don't think anyone is "too competitve" for any top 50 program, especially if you only have a B.A. I would never label myself "too competive" for any History Ph.D. program and I will be very grateful for every/any acceptance I recieve.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use